Division I schools spend more on athletes than education

8:14 AM,
Jan. 16, 2013

Spending in 2010 was higher on athletics than on academics at Division I NCAA schools.

Written by

Mary Beth Marklein, USA TODAY

Public universities competing in NCAA Division I sports spend as much as six times more per athlete than they spend to educate students, and likely for the first time per-athlete spending at schools in each of the six highest-profile football conferences topped $100,000 in 2010, an analysis of federal and school data finds.

Between 2005 and 2010, spending by athletic departments rose more than twice as fast as academic spending on a per-student basis.

Median per-athlete spending by 97 public institutions that compete in the top-tier Football Bowl Subdivision increased the most: 51%, to ...